08/01/2006

Game Developers and Porn Stars

Derek makes a really interesting point in his (sensationalistically titled!) post, Will Wright=Jenna Jameson. He's not saying that Will's got a nice rack, but rather that Jenna's rack and Will's brain are analogous - they are very, very important in a specific industry while their marketability in another field is unknown.

When we think of "game developers", who do we think of? The Miyamotos and the David Jaffes of the world, the Will Wrights, the superstars who make a salary way above the reach of the rank and file game developer. We tend to assume (or at least, I did) that game developers must be highly paid because their skills are so specific. But the reality is, as the popularity contests like Ten Hottest Guys in Games show, people are hard-pressed to name even ten developers, let alone know what they look like or understand what they do.

How many porn movies have you seen? Five? Ten? A couple hundred? How many porn stars can you name? I bet it's a fraction of the number of films you've seen. Derek has a point - it's a pyramid, but on the other hand, doesn't that exist at a lot of companies? Derek's real point is that game design and development, like porn, is not a transferrable skill. You can't walk into IBM or Oracle with intimate knowledge of the combat systems of God of War 2 and expect to get a job at the same level you were at. And when you leave, as many game developers know, there are kids lined up right behind you who will do your job for less.

There's always a prettier, younger girl who will shove you down the stairs and out of her way.

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that's why it pays to have an inimitable gimmick, a schtick, your trademark signature act. the peter norths and ron jeremys of the porn world are still bangin out the hits well into their fifties or whatever they are. get a trademark hairstyle or a nickname like "the hedgehog". your costars will cum and go, but you'll always be the pole they dance on. that's how you get "staying power" in any industry.

if you're a game developer or anyone else who has to compete with millions of younger, hotter, better educated programmers EAGER to work 18 hour days for $10 an hour, you better get to work on that schtick pronto. because complaining and organizing is unlikely to do much good. developers union? please. developing a reputation as "that actress who can't get enough anal"? now THAT'S job security!

Every other creative medium gives its creators their just due. This industry, since its inception, has done its best to mask the fact that its products are created by people, not logos.

Porn stars are not an appropriate comparison. First a) they are actors, and as we all know (pace Hitchcock), actors are cattle, anyway. And second, actual ability to act is largely irrelevant in a porn context--physical characteristics are far more important. (And not just for women either... Would anyone actually want to fuck Ron Jeremy, if his schlong were more modestly proportioned)?

Not everything in the world is because of Inevitable Market Forces (although some things are). Many things in the world are because of Conscious Individual Decisions, and the conscious individuals who run our benighted field have been a lot more interested in maximizing this quarter's revenues than in giving credit where credit is due. And the morons who run our media have been a lot more interested in sucking the teat of the corporate lackeys who feed them the next (non) "exclusive" tidbit than in actually talking about how games get made. And gamers have been more interested in twiddling their controllers than in finding something about the games they love.

Mind you, this is a self-correcting phenomenon. In 1940, who know the name of a single director? And they knew the names of actors only because studios -owned- the actors, and therefore felt it was safe to promote them, thereby giving themselves a marketing hook for the next game with the same actor.

As the audience becomes more sophisticated, it will learn more, and demand more from its informa tion sources.

"And second, actual ability to act is largely irrelevant in a porn context--physical characteristics are far more important."

Greg - would you not say the same is for designers? Young and eager people are willing to work for 1/4 of what you are making and work double the hours you are currently and bitch less than you do.

My complaint wasn't that I get no recognition, my complaint was that many people enter into our industry expecting to be the next (insert famous designer) and get used like a 2 bit whore. Either they are burntout or leave the industry entirely because our industry as a whole does nothing to reward designers.

And yes you are correct that people like Stephen King are pigeonholed and have no problem with it because they are well compensated. You don't see the cinematographers of the world complaining about how they can't use that skill outside of making films because they are paid/treated with enough respect that they don't feel like shooting their brains or leaving their job after 5+ years.

But I agree with you that things need to change and they will. Just a matter of time.

I find this an absolutely intriguing topic, and I must confess I simply stumbled upon it. In reference to your comparison, I come not from a game developer stance, but simply a programmer's stance (both open source and not, also from a firm owner's stance). The following is simply an attempt to encourage this dialogue further. I am of the fervent belief, as a programmer, author, and professor that game programmers hold the future of information interaction. Although I am a fan of Ms. Jameson's EXCELLENT credentials, and although the comparison simply cannot be avoided, I must encourage the lot of you to surge forth, not only for recognition and fame, but for the sheer sake of systems progression. Regardless of your understanding of your role in the "GAME" (forgive the pun, because there simply is a bigger game at foot), you play a part. That part is to allow us as a whole to interact with information more readily. This WILL be exploited!!! This is REGRETABLE!!! Your job is to salvage all that you can and do more for the common!!!